New Findings
by SilverTurtle
Summary: After her time at sea was over, Emma Tutweiller was invited on an archeological dig and finds more than interesting artifacts. She finds a familiar face...and a new course in life. Future fic. Warning: femslash within, it's wonderful. EDIT: Added scene.


**New Findings**

Emma Tutweiller had done a great many things in her life. She had held many jobs and seen many amazing sights. She had been a weather girl, a sketch comedienne, a Vegas showgirl, and for a few years a teacher on the high seas.

But this…this was new.

She had never been on a months long archeological dig before. She couldn't have refused the invitation from her old colleague Porky Peterson, former sports caster for WIMP news turned professional documentary maker and PhD holder in history and archeology. She hadn't spoken with him in years when she received his letter asking if she'd like to participate in one of the biggest archeological finds of the century. With an incentive like that she had accepted and rushed to his dig site deep in the Brazilian rainforest, after making arrangements with her sister to watch her cats.

She had also never seen one of her former students after they'd left her tutelage. It was quite a pleasant surprise to see Bailey Pickett, now a graduate student, in this out of the way place. Apparently the young woman had taken up archeology after graduating from Seven Seas High despite the experience she'd had with the spirit of Princess Zaria. The girl had always craved knowledge, and it seemed the best way to learn new things was to study old ones.

"Miss Tutweiller!" Bailey greeted her former teacher with genuine happiness the first time she'd stepped onto the site, "I didn't know you were going to be here."

"I'm not your teacher anymore, Bailey," she had replied, "call me Emma."

Bailey had smiled, white teeth sparkling from a tanned face. Then, as if she couldn't hold herself back any longer, Bailey had grabbed Emma into a tight hug, lifting her straight off the ground. "It's so good to see you!"

Emma felt her ribs creak but held Bailey just as tightly. It was the first time in a long time she'd been held like this and she was determined to enjoy it. It was also a pleasure to see one of her favorite students in her element and apparently happy to see her. "It's good to see you, too," she had said when Bailey set her back on her feet.

"So you two know each other," Porky had said, "Perfect. Then you can bunk with Bailey and she can show you around. Sound good?"

Bailey had nodded and Porky had wandered away to speak to a group of diggers.

Bailey had taken her to the hut they would share for the next several weeks then shown her around the camp, explaining how everything worked and what she'd been up to in the years since Emma had last seen her. Bailey had stayed nearby on their first trip to the dig site, remembering how Emma had reacted after the bus ride to Princess Zaria's temple, making sure that Emma hadn't gotten too shaken up and distracting her during the worst parts of the trip.

The next two weeks passed by in a blur to Emma. She and Bailey spent nearly twenty four hours a day every day together in the camp and at the dig site. Emma came to know her former student well, and was finding that she liked the woman Bailey had become very much. They grew very close. And they were about to grow closer.

They were hiking to another site where hieroglyphics from the first site indicated a personal dwelling for a high priestess could be found, and with it many interesting artifacts, when Emma felt a sharp pain in her calf muscle. She cried out, the surprising intensity of the pain preventing her from holding her tongue, immediately drawing Bailey's attention to her from where she was walking a few yards ahead.

Emma saw a flash of metal as it sped by her, flung from Bailey's hand on the run, felt the wind from the speeding object and heard the 'thunk' as it landed behind her. She turned to check what it was. Thankfully, Bailey had arrived to hold her up because what she saw made her sway, nauseous.

A snake.

A dead snake.

A snake made dead by the forceful separation of its head from its body by way of spade.

A spade thrown with deadly accuracy by Bailey Pickett.

Emma was sat on a convenient rock staring fixedly at the dead snake she now recognized as a fer-de-lance, reddish scales with dark triangles edged in lighter scales, as Bailey quickly inspected Emma's leg.

Emma was shocked when she felt Bailey's lips wrap around the wound and suck. Her eyes, which had been locked on the snake, were now directed at the marvel of Bailey's lips on her skin, hypnotizing her. Then Bailey pulled away and spat, repeating this process several times on a stunned silent Emma.

It took Emma a moment to realize that Bailey must be sucking venom out of the wound before it could get the chance to seriously harm her. She was relieved Bailey thought and acted so quickly, but distracted by the sensations those actions were producing within her.

The feeling of Bailey's lips on her skin made her heart race with want, her body tingle with desire, which she was simultaneously hoping and dreading was actually being caused by the venom and not by the beautiful woman tending her. It was ridiculous because Bailey was only trying to help her not seduce her and she should not be feeling this way. Still, she couldn't stop herself from imagining Bailey's lips on her skin for more pleasurable reasons and in more pleasurable places. Her mind wandered, dreaming up scenarios where that pleasure could be achieved; perhaps in their hut late at night, maybe on a private beach in a secluded cove; she could see it in her mind's eye…Bailey's hands undressing her, running all over her skin, lips following suit making trails down one side and up the other, tongue peeking out and tasting, teeth lightly nipping, kisses placed up calf, knee, thigh right to her core, driving her wild with ecstasy, and she would shiver when Bailey whispered her name, "Emma".

"Emma," only that wasn't in her mind.

"Emma?" And neither was that.

"Miss Tutweiller?" The concern in Bailey's voice and the use of the old moniker broke Emma out of her lust induced trance and she focused her eyes on Bailey's worried face.

"I'm okay, Bailey," she tried to reassure her former student turned friend, one hand reaching out to settle on Bailey's shoulder the other fanning her own face, "Just…lost myself for a moment."

"Are you sure? Because that snake is pretty poisonous and I think I got all the venom out but there's no way to be certain and you're looking kinda feverish so we should probably get you to-"

Emma's hand over Bailey's lips stopped the frantic babbling and without thinking about it she leaned forward, her hand sliding to the side of Bailey's face, and kissed Bailey's forehead. "I'm sure. Thank you, Bailey."

If anything Bailey looked more concerned than before, "Well, if you're sure," she said uncertainly, "But we're gonna use this antivenin just in case. The doc doesn't want any more fatalities this trip and I don't want to lose you to some lousy critter." Bailey pulled from a first aid kit, which Emma realized one of the diggers must have brought, a small case full of syringes capped with hypodermic needles each holding a dose of antivenom. Carefully the younger woman administered the dose then finished treating the leg wound with antiseptics and bandages. "I should take you back to camp."

Emma immediately stamped on that idea, "No, we came out here to find something, let's find it."

"But you're hurt."

"I'm fine. You made sure of that." Emma smiled at Bailey, making the young woman blush, "Now let's go find what we were looking for."

"Miss Bailey," one of the digging crew said tentatively, "The snake. May I-"

"Take it," Bailey said.

Off Emma's confused look Bailey explained, "Raoul and his wife make goods with snakeskin and eat the meat. I've had to do an awful lot of killing the poor things; it's the only way to make sure they don't come back. I figure if they have to be killed might as well get some good out of it, so Raoul and the guys have been collecting the carcasses and taking them home. They tell me business has really picked up since I've been around."

Raoul carefully wrapped and stowed the snake body in a special pouch, then he cleaned and returned Bailey's spade, "It is a most amazing skill she has, to kill every time she throws."

Bailey looked unhappy about this praise, and Emma knew she felt badly for every creature she killed, but curiosity would kill the cat and she said, "That was some sharp shootin' there, Tex. How did you get such good aim? And on the run, too."

"Oh. I thought you'd heard this story," Bailey responded with some relief, "We had flies all over the house one summer when our screen door broke and we used to get 'em with darts. But I felt bad for the little things so I just winged 'em and set 'em free. Took a lot better aim to wing 'em then kill 'em my pappy said."

Bailey stood and pulled Emma up with her, keeping her steady while Emma tested her injured leg and found it sound. "Alright, let's go digging."

"Fine," Bailey conceded then leveled an intense look at her, "But when we get there you're resting. I don't want to see you lifting a shovel. And if you start feeling out of sorts you tell me right away."

Emma agreed, enjoying this protective side of Bailey, and they continued on their way reaching the site indicated on their maps without further incident.

She watched Bailey carefully lay out a grid and begin digging with the crew, competently issuing orders, organizing everything, and giving Emma the job of cataloguing what they found. Emma knew the job was to make sure she didn't do anything too strenuous while still including her in the proceedings and she was impressed with the diplomacy that showed. Bailey had certainly matured from the know-it-all farm girl she'd been as Emma's student, in more ways than one.

Certainly she'd grown leaps and bounds in interpersonal relationships, no longer feeling the need to impress with a constant stream of knowledge she instead led with calm confidence. She was sure of herself and that made others trust her. She led by action, never asking someone to do what she would not. If ever a conflict arose she solved it with reason and diplomacy, making certain that everyone was satisfied. And Emma had seen that Bailey was kind and caring in the way she had treated Emma after the bite, making sure she was alright and checking up on her regularly to be certain she stayed that way. She was exactly the sort of person Emma had always found herself attracted to; intelligent without being annoying, confident without being overbearing and kind without being a push over.

It didn't hurt that she was also beautiful.

Emma had thought Bailey cute when she was teaching her, but now that she'd grown up and filled out she was stunning. Her hair had settled into a rich brown color, smooth and sleek in a braid down her back. Her smile, always attractive, was made more so by full lips, straight white teeth, and flashing dimples in a tanned face. Her eyes were the same soulful brown they'd always been, but now held a maturity and spark that were new. Her body was svelte, with perfectly tantalizing curves, and boundless energy. In short, she was gorgeous. And Emma couldn't help but stare.

They spent hours at this secondary site, breaking every so often for meals and rest, giving Emma plenty of time to watch the object of her affection in action. Bailey called a halt with enough time for them to return to the main site before sundown with the few items they'd found so far.

Emma observed that Bailey stayed near her on the return hike, not letting her carry any of her own gear as she'd done on the way up. And she sat beside her on the bus, silent but alert, responding to any movement Emma made with a concerned glance or a soft question.

In an effort to distract Bailey from her obvious worry, Emma asked her something that had been bugging her since being treated, "Bailey, why did you call the antivenom 'antivenin'?"

Bailey entered into what Emma fondly recognized as her 'lecturing mode' and explained, "When I started my major in archeology I had a professor, Jaques Beaulieu, who called it antivenin. I asked him about it and he told me that 'venom' comes from the French 'venin' and he absolutely refused to use any English bastardization of his mother tongue if he could help it, he actually taught all of his classes speaking entirely in French. He used to rant about how the English language was destroying every other language, and he wouldn't call it 'antivenom' so we students all just learned to use 'antivenin' in our papers and when speaking to him. I did a little extra research and found that 'venin' and 'antivenin' were common terms until 1981 when the World Health Organization decided that the preferred terminology would be the English 'venom' and 'antivenom'. Though all the terms are technically correct, to be honest, I like the term 'venin' better and it did come first so it became habit. I don't even notice it when I use it anymore."

Emma nodded, "I see. Professor Beaulieu sounds like an interesting man."

Bailey smiled, "He is. We write one another every once in a while. It helps me keep my French fresh and he gets to hear all about the latest digs."

"That's nice," Emma said.

"How are you feeling?"

It had been a nice distraction while it lasted. Emma smiled, patted Bailey's knee, and said "I'm fine. Really."

As they returned to their camp Emma noticed Bailey paying her close attention, helping her from the bus they used for transport and to their hut where her attention didn't waver. Emma could feel Bailey's eyes on her even when her back was turned, and while she didn't mind it she'd like to know the reason for it.

"Bailey," she began moving to look Bailey in the eyes, "why are you watching me?"

Emma saw Bailey's eyes shift through a gamut of emotions, flashing through them so quickly that she couldn't identify a single one, before glancing down at the hands clenched over her knees.

And suddenly Bailey was on her knees before Emma, arms wrapped tight around her former teacher's waist, the side of her face pressed against a flat stomach. The surprise of this action didn't stop Emma from gently hugging Bailey back with one arm and allowing her other hand to loosen and sift through Bailey's braid. "Bailey?" she questioned softly.

"I was so afraid that I'd gotten you killed. I never should have brought you out here."

"Bailey, you didn't. I came on my own because Porky invited me."

"Because I asked him to!"

"What?"

It came pouring out in a fast stream of babble, "He talked about you, you know. He was always saying 'Emma this' and 'Emma that', then I finally asked him 'Emma who' and he said your name and I got so excited knowing someone who used to know you and thought it would be a great idea to invite you out here, so I asked him to because I didn't know if you'd come if I wrote you and I nearly got you killed!"

Emma responded to the hysteria in Bailey's voice in the same way she responded to her cats scratching the furniture, "No." she said sternly in a tone that brooked no argument, "You didn't nearly get me killed. I am fine. Well and whole, because you got the venom out so quickly, because you took care of me. Because you made sure I was alright. And I _am_ alright, Bailey. Better than."

Emma managed to get a hand on either side of Bailey's face and locked her eyes with the younger woman's, "I'm okay," she said softly, her thumbs moving soothingly over Bailey's cheekbones, "I'm fine. And I'm not going anywhere."

She could think of nothing else to say, and Bailey still looked so scared and unsure, so she did the only thing she could think of.

She kissed Bailey.

Right on the lips.

Warm and soft and perfect, the way a first kiss should be.

As chaste as it was it still made her heart pound and her breath catch. She felt Bailey's breath hitch when she gasped and was surprised when she felt Bailey make a firm seal of their melded lips, pressing into the kiss for all she was worth making it a great deal less chaste than it had started.

When Emma pulled away and opened her eyes she studied Bailey's face. She took in the way the younger woman's brow was crinkled, the way her eyes were still closed, the way her lips were still pouted and moist. Then she noticed those beautiful lips begin to lift into a smile and she felt and answering grin form on her own face so she was smiling when Bailey opened her eyes.

"Alright?" Emma asked.

"Yeah," Bailey replied, stretching up to kiss Emma again.

She could say that one of the fantasies she'd had earlier that day came true that night, but it would be a lie.

They waited _at_ _least_ three days before they couldn't control themselves any longer and ignited in a fit of passion in their shared hut.

That dig was only the beginning for them.

It began a long and fruitful career for Bailey as an archeologist, and one for Emma as a documentary narrator. The two working together, travelling the world, having adventures, making new and exciting discoveries, and falling deeper in love with one another.

It wasn't a life either would have imagined for themselves, but one neither would have traded for anything.

THE END


End file.
